University of California, Merced – Bobcats Swept by Fourth-Ranked Vanguard University

COSTA MESA, Calif. – The University of California, Merced men’s volleyball team was swept by #4 Vanguard University on Saturday night, falling 3-0 (25-14, 25-16, 25-20).

The Bobcats (1-4) got five kills and a block each out of Chris Morikawa and Ryan Kilgore. Morikawa’s block was a solo block, putting him ahead of Jacob Semon for sixth in program history with 24 career solo blocks.

Jozef Lingenfelter recorded a career-high five digs to go along with four kills and a service ace, while Jared Schnake had four kills and a service ace.

Toby Miller finished with 13 assists, three digs and an ace. Sebas Moreno and Ashton Wooldridge finished with seven and four digs, respectively. Wooldridge also gave the Bobcats four players with an ace.

Fourth-ranked Vanguard University saw four players record eight or more kills with a combined hitting percentage of .476 in the sweep.

The Bobcats fell behind by double figures in each of the first two sets and were only able to string consecutive points together on a combined five occasions in those two sets. Head coach Ai Prachumsri‘s teams best stretch was a 5-0 run to stave off five straight Vanguard set points in the second set.

UC Merced kept the margin closer in the third set and were within four points late before ultimately falling 25-20.

Vanguard marked the Bobcats fourth opponent in their first five matches that were either ranked in the top 15 in the NAIA or NCAA Division III.

Looking ahead, UC Merced will play Dordt University on Friday, February 10 at the UJ Invitational in Jamestown, N.D. First serve is scheduled for 10:00am PST at University of Jamestown.